Food

Since the restaurant’s opening in 2021, the kitchen has been led by the native Westphalian Dominik Matokanovic, who presents a cuisine with character, based on the classic French techniques of his training and combining the finest regional products with influences and ingredients from Croatian cuisine. Of course, this is no coincidence. In fact, it’s the family of head chef Dominik Matokanovic that plays a role, as they originally come from Croatia. While in the early days of his time at Tante Fichte Speiselokal, it was primarily the traditional, village-style cuisine of the East—strongly influenced by the former Ottoman Empire—that inspired Matokanovic, today it’s the entirety of Croatian cuisine that flows into his creations. Dominik regularly travels to the country of his ancestors to talk with family and friends about Croatian traditions and food culture, to track down old recipes, and, of course, to visit producers. Thus, after his travels, our chef not only brings a wealth of new inspirations back to Berlin but also new products: He now buys olive oil and truffles from Istria, sea fennel from the island of Pag, fish from the island of Otok-Ugljan, and spicy, seasoned Kulen—a specialty sausage that is only allowed to be produced in Slavonia and partially in Serbia.

With his five to seven-course menu, Dominik wants to convey a sense of home—and for him, home is not just the homeland of his ancestors but also, since 2016, Berlin. In his menu, he blends both worlds, and thus Matokanovic also eagerly sources products from the Berlin region. He prefers to buy vegetables from BauerDirekt in Brandenburg, game from hunter Jörn Korte, grains, eggs, milk, and fruit from Ökohof Kuhhorst, and caviar from the Berlin-based company Imperial Caviar.

When the weather is nice, we also offer our “Tante on the Sidewalk.” Small dishes and Croatian-inspired burgers are served on the sidewalk or at our bar.

We do not offer a vegan menu option because butter is a matter close to our hearts

Vegetarian Signature Menu
Berlin x Croatia
ovdje i sada• here and now

Bundeva Šataras
Bundeva, which means pumpkin. Butternut pumpkin is roasted whole in the oven. It is served with a clear bell pepper-tomato broth, accompanied by bell peppers and pumpkin.

homemade bread.

Skripavac / Beetroot / Navette
Baked Skripavac, a compact, traditional Croatian cheese. Served with a beetroot cream and pickled beetroot with Navettes.

Shallot / Whey / Buckwheat
Shallots cooked whole in their skins, braised and caramelized shallot with buckwheat, and a whey broth with chervil oil.

Rizot / Truffle
We cook our Rizot, the Istrian term for risotto, using pearl barley. Enhanced with truffle from Karlic Tartufi.

“Krause Glucke” / Kupus / Quince
Kupus, or cabbage, is roasted whole in the oven until dark. A rich sauce is made from the outer leaves and used to glaze the cooked cabbage. This is served with homemade quince balsamic vinegar and butter-sautéed “Krause Glucke” what is also known as cauliflower mushroom.

Eggplant à la Cobanac
A terrine of grilled eggplant, dried tomato, and pointed pepper, seasoned with Cobanac flavors. Cobanac is a shepherd’s stew with the aromas of juniper, bay leaf, tomato, thyme, and rosemary. Served with fig leaf oil and cold-stirred polenta with sheep’s cheese and parsley.

Persimmon / Olive Oil / white chocolate
Mousse of white chocolate and olive oil, baked kataifi, marigold ice cream, and persimmon.

Finish